Photo By Sgt. Matthew Wester | Dr. (Maj.) Troy Denunzio, from El Paso, Texas, field surgeon for 2nd Battalion, 70th...... read more read more
Sgt. Matthew Wester
3/1 AD PAO
SABA AL BOR, Iraq " A group of Humvees barreled down a dusty road in Saba Al Bor, a bustling Iraqi town of 90,000 people northwest of Baghdad.
The Soldiers in the humvees weren't entering the city for combat, but rather to link up with a group of Iraqi Army troops and set up an impromptu clinic for the town's residents -- all part of a larger program of partnering with the Iraqi government and security forces to improve life in this corner of Iraq.
Members of Camp Taji-based 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division; Iraqi Soldiers from 2nd Mechanized Battalion, 1st Mechanized Brigade, 9th Iraqi Army Division; and supporting units set up the clinic in Saba Al Bor Primary School Nov. 10.
Army medical professionals treated more than 300 patients.
"We bring (the residents) in and try to treat as many as we can for any acute medical ailments that they have," said Dr. (Capt.) Daniel Bauer, a surgeon for 3rd Brigade. "We saw a lot of colds and we saw a few people with chronic medical problems like back pain and joint aches."
The medics and doctors brought several large boxes of medicine with them and prescribed the proper medications for patients on the spot.
Hundreds of people lined up outside the school and made their way inside the facility for treatment in the building's freshly-painted breezeway. The school represents another facet of the program to improve this city: renewing public buildings in disrepair.
The project was a team effort.
Capt. Christian Blanding, a civil affairs team leader for A Company, 490th Civil Affairs Battalion, said a local Iraqi governance council came up with the school-refurbishment idea, his team managed the project, The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers helped draw up a building plan, and Iraqi contractors and laborers did the actual construction at the school.
"When I first saw the school, there were a lot of improvements that needed to be done," said Elvin Antonio, an engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. "What we did here was refurbish a lot of the classrooms and the washrooms. We put lights in, not only in the classrooms, but along the walkways and exterior."
Antonio was at the school to evaluate the completed project and he approved of the repairs made by Iraqi contractors.
"All in all, there is improvement everywhere," he said.
Blanding listed the indicators of a successful project like this.
"One, you want to make sure you have a good stable structure," he said.
"Two, we want to make sure it's a safe enough environment, and clean enough environment for these kids."
Both of those goals were achieved.
Blanding stressed that the Saba Al Bor Primary School construction project was done in partnership with Iraqis" a partnership that was readily-apparent during the medical event as well.
U.S. and Iraqi troops worked together to secure the site during the medical mission. Iraqi Army Soldiers helped with crowd control both inside and outside the building.
In the school, Bauer and the other medical personnel continued to see patient after patient, trying to alleviate some of the citizens' aches and pains.
He saw the event as a positive, but added that there is a trend toward Iraqi doctors caring for their own people in permanent clinics.
"In our area, we're working with civil affairs to help create and fix up several clinics in the area," Bauer said. "Once we get those clinics fixed up and complete, the Iraqis will be able to work a little bit more independently with their own medical supplies, seeing their patients on their own, and being able to handle more of these chronic problems themselves."
The same trend is in motion in the public works realm as well, with Iraqi leaders taking more and more responsibility for building up their area's infrastructure.
Blanding underscored the importance of investing in Saba Al Bor's infrastructure, particularly schools.
"Clean, safe schools will equal good, quality teachers coming in from this area and the areas surrounding Baghdad to educate these kids and hopefully turn them away from violence," he said. "That's the larger impact."
| Date Taken: | 11.28.2005 |
| Date Posted: | 11.28.2005 12:59 |
| Story ID: | 3882 |
| Location: | SABA AL BOR, IQ |
| Web Views: | 430 |
| Downloads: | 67 |
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